Bringing the power of continuous improvement to the project setting

If Kaizen Works for a Casket Manufacturer What Might it Do for You?

Each year Industry Week (IW) profiles the best manufacturers. The recent years’s lists have been dominated by firms employing lean approaches. Batesville Caskets is one of those firms, A Daily Routine of Continuous Improvement. In addition to their build just what is ordered and their commitment to continuous flow manufacturing, Batesville has become a benchmark company for many different manufacturers based on their commitment to kaizen.

At Batesville they call their continuous improvement efforts “Daily Improvement Target Countermeasures” or DITCA. While it’s a mouthful, their most recent efforts have saved the firm over $1 million. Their approach is like the Quick ‘n Easy Kaizen (QnEK) approach. As we’ve profiled before, QnEK is a numbers game. It’s like shots on goal. Over the season, the team that shoots more eventually scores more. Whether you’re working on a production line or on a project, making your job easier, safer, or doing something that adds just a little more value will eventually pay off in a big way. Batesville takes that approach. And they’ve recently been recognized by the National Safety Council for their outstanding safety record. Kaizen and safety go hand-in-glove.

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Change for the Better

kai - zen

Small change, everyday, results in big change in no time. The practice is distinctly Japanese, but there are many non-Japanese - both individuals and companies - that have embraced "do a little better everyday."

People in the project setting often ask, "Why bother? The project will be over in no time. We will disband going on to something else. Why should we take time out of our already busy (and behind) schedule?"

How would you answer? For me, projects over a distinct opportunity to deal with something new. They are a great sandbox for testing our ideas.

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